Ranger Corp Birthday Special
by Kadrian
Summary: Today is the 100th anniversary since the founding of the ranger corp. Rangers from their missions were suddenly plucked by invisible force back into castle Araluen to celebrate this happy and joyous day!


A.N.: This is like a birthday special. Today(actually tomorrow) is my birthday so I decided to write this story(even though I should have slacked off ^ ^ ) hope you enjoy!

P.S. No, I am not abandoning my other story. This is just a little 'Special' thing.

P.S.S. I know that Jenny's Restaurant is in Redmont, but oh well, who cares if I move it to Castle Araluen?

* * *

Sitting up, Will took in his surrounding while rubbing his sore head with a groan. He swore that he was in Seacliff fief just a few minutes ago doing ranger business. But why in the world was he here? Here, as in Castle Araluen. Dropped right into Halt's small little cottage. He might have come up with an explanation if he was the only one in the room, but there was Halt. His former mentor was in Hibernian because of some business he must attend to. But instead, that grim old ranger was right next to him on the floor. It had been almost two years since they last met and five years since Will had officially became a full fledge ranger.

"Hello, Will." Gilan's winded voice made him look behind him, where the third ranger was sitting up and rubbing his back furiously, "Nice to see you there."

The brunet rubbed his eyes and pinched his cheeks to make sure that he wasn't dreaming. Why was Gilan here? Wasn't he supposed to be in Skandian for whatever business? He couldn't understand and it was giving him a splitting headache.

"Nice to see you too, Gil." Will replied as he stood up and the old ranger beside him cracked open his eyes at that.

Halt eyed Will for a moment, confused, before switching it to Gilan, "Am I dreaming?"

"No, I don't think so." The twenty-five years old brunet replied as smoothed his long white coat.

Wait, what? He stared down in shock as he registered what he was wearing. A very fancy suit, a very fancy long coat, and a very fancy pair of black boots, "I am dreaming." He said out loud.

"I don't think so." The tall ranger repeated the brunet's earlier statement with a grin and helped the older ranger up with a hand.

"How did this happened?" Halt demanded as he stood up and brushed the dust off his equally fancy black coat with distaste, "I was just getting ready to sign a document. Why am I here?"

Gilan rolled his eyes, "How in the world should I know?"

Their conversation was interrupted by a loud thwack on the door, jerking all three of their attention toward the wooden door. The sound didn't come again and Gilan opened the cottage door. There, was an arrow burying into the door and a rolled up piece of paper dangling at the end. The tall ranger took the arrow down and went back inside. The three of the gathered around as he unrolled it and started reading.

 _Greetings, rangers and people of Castle Araluen,_

 _Are you wondering why you are here? Back in Castle Araluen? (If you already are in Castle Araluen before this, then ignore that question above) Yeah yeah, before you start yelling your head off, just wanna ask you all something._

 _Do you remember what day it is today?_

The three rangers exchanged a confused glance before Gilan continued reading,

 _Let me guess, you don't know. (I got that right, didn't I?) Alright, geniuses (Or should I say, stupid?) Today is the hundredth anniversary since the ranger corp. was first founded._

"It was?" Will asked out loud.

"No idea." Gilan and Halt echoed before the tall ranger continued once again.

 _Let me guess, you just stared at each other incredulously (I got that right again, didn't I?). Well, enough of chit chats. I am sure you haven't seen each other in a long time, am I right? So why don't you treat this as a little get together to celebrate the hundredth birthday of the ranger corp.?_

 _In case you just said no and was tempted to rip this letter apart, please hold up. I have put a barrier around Castle Araluen (Just barely including Halt's little cottage). You cannot go outside until after all members celebrated today. If you are going to say 'how stupid' and attempt to go outside, well, my advice is that you shouldn't do it. If you just asked 'why', then let me ask you a simple question, how did you arrive back in here?  
Let me guess a third time, you were speechless. I am magical, duh. I can pluck you straight from where you are to a puddle of mud (Halt, you must like this!). Sorry, was I being a little rude?_

 _Anyways, I have said what I wanted to say but I will repeat it once again for your information and memory: Celebrate the birthday today. (Jenny, I am sure they will love to eat your food, but why not try an outdoor picnic? Just an idea!)._

 _Peace out,_

 _Kawazoe Kumiko (Yeah, that's my name and I am a girl.)_

As soon as Gilan finished talking, Halt raised an eyebrow, "How magical and unbelievable. Well, I need to be going right now. I have a document to sign."

"There is a PS here, Halt." The tall ranger said as he turned back to the paper, " _P.S. Halt, do not even consider going back to do your business. I am very serious here. As a demonstration, turn to the door."_

Halt did and the door was swung open with such force that it was nearly ripped off its hinge. Will winced and felt sorry for the door.

" _P.S.S._ _I am sorry. I kinda used a little bit too much magic."_ Gilan read with a small grin, "Wow, Halt. I think this Kumiko is indeed very serious about this celebration."

"Blast her," Halt cursed and stomped out the door.

"Where are you going?" The tall ranger called out as he hurried to the door, "She said that there is a barrier-"

"I am going up to Crowley and see if he received the same letter or not." Halt called out grimly.

"Then I am going to Jenny's." Gilan replied and turned back to Will, "Come, Will. Let's go, should we?"

"Yes, Gil." The brunet sighed and hurried off toward the looming castle in the distance.

* * *

"Tables over there! Chairs beside the table!" Crowley bellowed to the rangers as they hurried to work.

Taking the tables from Jenny's restaurants, with her consent, and placing them in the loud outdoor space. The head ranger was amazed at how magical the whole event was. Just yesterday there was only one ranger in Araluen Fief, now there are around fifty or so rangers here along with Jenny, Alyss, Horace, George, Will's four ward mates and their former masters, Rodney, Chubb, Nigel and Pauline, busying in their set ups. He wasn't sure whether or not this was a Will-centric event or an actual ranger's anniversary for Horace, George, Alyss, Jenny weren't rangers at all. But he didn't really mind as he smelled the food trolleys being pushed to their outdoor area.

For a moment, he wanted to thank this Kumiko girl for this event. It had been long since all rangers were present in an official ranger's gathering. It was mandatory to attend though the missions had been getting longer over the past few years, making several rangers unable to attend. Mostly the trio, Will, Gilan and Halt, he thought. This was a good time for a reunion between the rangers, he realized.

"No, Horace!" Sir Rodney's voice cut through his thoughts, "The chair doesn't go on top of the table nor under. Put it beside the table!"

"Yes, of course!" Horace squeaked out loud, "I am sorry."

From where he was, Crowley watched as Will patted Horace sarcastically on the shoulder before sauntering off with a small grin on his face. Even though the five ward mates were in their mid-twenties, they still maintained their childishness, not that it was bad. In fact, he was glad of it. Will have been through a lot of bad things when he was captured about ten years ago during that Morgarath confrontation incident. But they were still pure and Crowley hoped that they will stay that way forever.

"And here you are, giving commands while doing nothing?" Baron Arald's cheerful voice greeted him.

"I was maintaining the order and preventing a chaos from happening." The head ranger said, turning to greet the Baron, "How are things going?"

"Well," The baron grunted unhappily, "I was just about to get my nap when I was plopped straight down behind the horse stable. I am telling you, it was a hard ground and my backside hurt like no tomorrow. I am ready to sue that girl already. That arrow landed right next to my hand, scaring the daylight out of me. And she didn't even apologize in her letter."

"You should have seen Halt as he barged into the room I was in," Crowley laughed, "He was furious and grim and was demanding if whether or not I was playing with him. It took me a while to explain that I wasn't playing with him and that he should get ready for the party. When I mentioned that he should probably cut his beard, not with a Saxe knife, he nearly killed me with his glare."

"My experience was the worse." Baron Arald shook his head, "Of all the places, she dumped me onto the ground."

"So, how are you faring, Crowley?" The baron asked as he finished his complaints.

"Same as usual." The head ranger sighed, "Paper works, paper works, and more paper works."

"I feel your pain." The baron clapped him heartily on the shoulder, "I really do feel your pain."

* * *

"Will!" A feminine voice halt him in his track and he turned around, already knowing who it was.

Alyss crashed into him and gave him a bear hug, "Oh, I missed you, Will!"

"Me too." The brunet couldn't keep the grin from his voice as he hugged the girl back, "It had been long."

In fact, it had been too long. Ever since he had officially became a ranger, he kept on being send onto missions, one after another. Sometimes with Halt, sometimes with Gilan and Horace, or sometimes only the three rangers. He was glad that Halt still hadn't retire yet. But he was closed to, Will knew.

Alyss intertwined their arms together and made their way toward Jenny's restaurants, "Let's go and help Jenny."

"Have you seen George?" Will asked as they walked.

"Yeah," The courier girl rolled her eyes, "He was playing with Horace. I swear the Horace nearly died when George read him his long speech dedicated for this occasion. It was long, I will tell you."

"Sounds like George." The brunet grinned, "So, how are you doing?"

"Normal, boring stuff." Alyss waved her hand elegantly, "Diplomat stuff. It was very boring except when I was send on a few missions. There weren't a lot so most of the time I stay in Castle Redmont and talk with Lady Pauline. That aside, how are you, Will?"

Will shrugged and grinned, "Life is good. I get to go on a lot of missions. They were fun and adventurous."

The blond girl just sighed, "That sounded just like you, Will. You are so similar to Horace. Well, except you didn't go around boasting about your muscles."

"He did what?" Will choked as he swallowed.

"It is not exactly what you are thinking," Alyss explained with a mischievous gleam in her eyes, "Sir Rodney assigned him a teaching duty. Horace was to help around the Battle school and stuff like that. So ever since that, he went around letting the students and battle school apprentices challenge him to a duel. Well, of course. He won all of them."

"That sounded exactly like Horace." Will finally said.

They stopped in front of Jenny's restaurants and pushed open the door. Will's stomach gave a loud groan that made Alyss stared.

"Sorry." He apologized as they made their way to the back kitchen. The food smelled really good, they both realized. For Will, it had been long since he had last eaten a decent and delicious meal. After all, you can't be expecting feast every day on missions nor feast every day if you are a ranger. Rangers need to be kept fit or they will lose their job.

"Hello, Will. Hello, Alyss!" Jenny greeted them, wiping her greasy hand on her apron, "I am about ready here. Just another few dishes then we are done."

Without missing a beat, she ladled a serving boy as he passed by, "Rafe, how many time did I tell you to not run in the kitchen?"

"Sorry, Miss." The boy grinned apologetically.

Rafe? Will raised his eyebrow in surprise. Rafe was the boy who was illiterate and misplaced the knife and the fork often during the earlier years.

"Hello, Mister Treaty!" Rafe said, greeting the tall ranger with a smile, "Nice to see you again."

"Same here, Rafe." The brunet smiled and the boy hurriedly walked away, a tray in hand and placed it onto a trolley before pushing it out the door.

Alyss and Will stood on the side to prevent getting in the way of Jenny and her other staff. After a moment, they were done and Will stomped his feet to get the blood floating again.

"All done here," Jenny announced as she took off her apron, "Let's go, should we?"

* * *

"I hereby announce," Crowley cleared his throat loudly, "The hundredth anniversary of the ranger corp.!"

The tables erupted in cheers and it was deafening. The head ranger was glad that they were enjoying themselves and getting to reunite with their old friends. It was a rare chance, he had to say once again. And indeed, he was forever thankful for it.

"Now, before we start digging in into Miss Dalby's excellent feast," That earned a beam from the girl, "Let's thank this Kumiko for this event. It isn't very often that we can all gather around here and simply talk about things non-mission related and not worrying about what is going to happen next."

That drew jeers and boos from the audience. One particular lone voice shouted out, "I was dropped onto the hard floor and it knocked the wind out of me! I swear, I don't ever want to meet that girl."

"Exactly, my butt is still sore!" One of the newer rangers added.

There were choruses of agreements, earning rounds of laughter from the fellow rangers and the few non-rangers.

"But let's just be grateful for this chance of reunion." Crowley smiled and held up his cup, "Let's drink to-"

His speech was interrupted as an arrow pierced through his glass cup and lodged itself between the sharp broken edges. Luckily there weren't any liquid inside the cup and the broken shards didn't land on his hand. There were collective gasps of surprise and shock.

"Was that an intruder?" One of the leaped up, his Saxe knife already in hand.

Crowley sighed and calmed the crowd down as he carefully placed the broken glass on the table and removed the parchment dangling at the end of the arrow, "No, it is not an intruder. Rather, I think it is our friend Kumiko arriving."

Some of the groaned but they released their grip on their Saxe knife and some of the asked what was in the parchment. Crowley unrolled the tied up parchment and bend it so he could read it better. Clearing his throat, he began:

 _Greetings, my fellow rangers and non-rangers,_

 _Have you been talking behind my back, my friends? I know you were for I was sneezing nonstop for the last few minutes. But anyways. I heard that you were thankful for this reunion. Yes, yes, you are welcome and all. So, just wanna say congrats for this special little day._

 _I am so sorry for the arrow. I wasn't planning to Kill Crowley. It was an accident and I apologize deeply for my action. But I couldn't find anything to stick my arrow in. I promise next time I will do better._

There were groans as they heard the last sentences. Most of them were dreading the 'next time'.

 _Well, I know you haven't have your little celebrating dinner yet. So I will keep this real short. Will, your mandola is beneath your chair. I just put it there. I really enjoy your songs, especially the Greybeard Halt. Will you play it for me? Halt, don't you dare disrupting Will's awesome singing. You know what will happen (I have magic). By the way, Will. I have written a song for you to try. I stuck it on the back of your mandala. No, not with arrows. With tape._

 _Peace out for now,_

 _Kawazoe Kumiko_

 _P.S. In case you don't know what a tape is, it is a sticky substance but easy to be peeled off from a smooth surface like your mandola._

Will snickered loudly as he heard the permission given for singing that song, "Can I play that before we began eating, Crowley?"

"Go ahead." The head ranger replied with a big grin, ignoring the threatening glare from a particular ranger.

The brunet stood up, grabbed the mandola from under his seat and stood in the center of the ring formed by the tables. Crowley watched as the brunet peeled off a piece of paper from the back of the mandola. Took a look and raised an eyebrow. Placing the paper on the leafy floor beside him, he took a deep breath and began drumming his mandola softly.

 _Greybeard Halt is a friend of mine_

 _He lives on Redmont's hill_

 _Greybeard Halt never took a bath_

 _And they say He never will!_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _Fare thee well, I say_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _I'll see you on your way_

 _Greybeard Halt, he lost a bet_

 _He lost his winter coat_

 _When winter comes, Halt stays warm_

 _By sleeping 'mongst the goats._

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _Fare thee well, I say_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _I'll see you on your way._

 _Greybeard Halt, he lives with goats_

 _That's what I've heard tell_

 _He hasn't changed his socks for years_

 _But the goats don't mind the smell!_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _Fare thee well, I say_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _I'll see you on your way_

 _Greybeard Halt is a fighting man_

 _I've heard common talk_

 _That Greybeard Halt, he cuts his hair_

 _With a Sax knife and fork!_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _Fare thee well, I say_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _I'll see you on your way_

He did a dramatic bow at the end of the song, causing the tables to erupt in cheers. With the exception of one particular ranger who looked as if he was ready to kill somebody but was afraid of the consequence from a particular goddess above them.

"Next," Will announced as he swept the paper up from the floor, "Is a new song. I think."

He drummed experimentally on the mandola once again and began singing in his voice.

 _Happy birthday to you_

 _Happy birthday to you_

 _Happy birthday, ranger corp._

 _Happy birthday to you_

 _There once was a ranger_

 _Founded the ranger corp._

 _Not the keeper of the crops_

 _But the oh so mighty-s_

 _They shoot arrows like craze_

 _Each one hitting the mark_

 _The trails of the arrows were hazy_

 _The target was down faster-_

 _than you can bark_

 _They were so awesome at_

 _Everything and anything_

 _But that is too much work_

 _To list them all right here_

 _So_

 _Happy birthday to you_

 _Happy birthday to you_

 _Happy birthday dear rangers_

 _Happy birthday to you._

Will slowly drummed to a stop. The crowd cheered as he finished and they started clapping enthusiastically. The brunet had to admit that the song was decent, better than he had thought though it was a little off tune.

The brunet looked up sharply and ducked just in time as an arrow whooshed over his head, nearly nailing itself onto his forehead. There were chorused groans as they heard the sound of the arrow nailing the chair.

"That was close." He commented loudly and plucked the arrow from the back of the chair.

The audience waited curiously as he untied the third parchment of that day.

 _Greetings, my friends,_

 _Did you like my song? I know, you loved it, didn't you? No, don't be shy. You did. Anyways, enough chit chat. I will advise you all to dig in this instant for I will be transporting you all back at 12 o'clock precisely. You have three more hours to enjoy this little party I set up._

 _I am sorry that I couldn't let you stay for any longer. But look, birthdays are only twenty four hours, am I right? So at 12 o'clock, you will all be right back where you were before this. I merely froze the time of the world outside the barrier (I know, I am super) to conduct this party. So you will all be back where you were without any trouble after this._

 _By the way, don't forget to say happy birthday to me as well!_

 _Cheers,_

 _Kawazoe Kumiko_


End file.
